1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to seats for bathing enclosures wherein the seat can also serve as a back rest. It also relates to a hinge assembly for retaining and moving a combined seat or back rest.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Walk-in bathing enclosures are becoming more in demand as bathing facilities. These bathing enclosures have doors in a side wall to provide easy access. However, once a person such as an elderly or handicapped person enters the enclosure, there is a problem concerning sitting down on the tub floor which is at a low level. There is therefore a need to provide a seat member which is positioned well below the top of the bathing enclosure (to permit immersion of the lower torso) when a bather is seated on the seat.
In some situations, those without handicaps also wish to use these tubs (e.g. at the home of an elderly couple, one of which is handicapped; the other of which is not). The user who is not handicapped often wants to sit on the tub floor for maximum immersion. However, the existence of a non-movable seat will prevent this.
In U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,597,922 and 2,899,688, there are shown combined tub seat and back rest members in conjunction with bathing facilities. The seats pivot out of the way when not in use. However, they are not positioned deep into the tub portion and thus fail to afford enough exposure to the water. The art also tried using totally removable shelves insertable in the tub. However, removal of the shelves was awkward for the handicapped, and when removed, storage of the shelves was a problem. Also, the seats are not securely retained when in the up position and thus may fall. There was, therefore, a need for a tub seat that could support a user from deep inside the tub, but could readily be moved out of the way so as not to limit use of the tub by a non-handicapped user; and which had secured positions in each selected position.